Whitney Fordman
Whitney is one of Clark's close childhood friends from Smallville that transferred to Clark's school when they were twelve. Superman Family Album Whitney came from a very well to do family, at least until Whitney's father went bankrupt and had to move his family to Smallville in the hopes of still giving his family a decent life. Whitney immediately started antagonizing Clark, seeing someone who worked on a farm as being lower than him. Clark tried not to let his anger get the better of him, and some words from his father helped him realize that he needed to reach out to his bully instead of fighting him. The next weekend, Clark went on a fishing trip and heard Whitney's cry for help. Finding him in a field with a twisted ankle and a wheat thrasher approaching, Clark pulled Whitney to safety. Whitney couldn't understand why Clark saved him when all he'd done is insult and belittle the Kents. Clark helped Whitney understand that in Smallville, everyone was pretty much in the same social standing. The two boys spent the rest of the day fishing and swimming while forming a friendship. Two Years Later Over the next few years, Whitney became a close part of the group, even standing up for Pete when others harassed him. It was only when he witnessed Pete's bravery at a haunted house that he realized that he was attracted to his best friend, which started his questioning his own sexuality. By the time of Lana's birthday, Whitney had realized that he no longer had any feelings for her and helped Clark win Lana over by claiming that an extravagant gift he'd bought was really from Clark. Having confided in both Lana and Clark about his attraction to their friend, they pushed him to admit his feelings to Pete. It was only when Lana's brothers were interfering in Clark and Lana's relationship that Whitney told Pete the truth, and was relieved that Pete didn't share his feelings as they were better off as friends. After Pete was paralyzed during a cave-in, Whitney offered his full support for his friend by saying he'd build wheelchair ramps all over the town if that's what he needed to do. Shortly after visiting the Kent Farm, Whitney ran into his idol Jason Teague, the greatest football player to come out of Smallville High. Whitney was ecstatic when Jason offered to train him for the upcoming football season. It was during a training session with Jason that Whitney finally started to admit that he was gay, to which Jason replied that he had Whitney's back if anyone harassed him. Whitney came out to his friends and family during a barbeque at the Kent's to celebrate the start of summer, and before the end of the night met the person he'd eventually spend the rest of his life with, although this person remained unseen to the reader. Appearances Whitney is a main character in the Superman Family Album back-up stories in Action Comics. Trivia * Whitney's incident with the wheat thrasher in Action Comics #1 was based on Ricky White's similar incident in Superman III. * He's the starting quarterback for Smallville High. * While a minor character in the Smallville live action series and The Man of Steel movie, he's never been a canon character in the comics, unlike Chloe Sullivan. * Whitney's struggles with his sexuality will continue to be a running subplot for the next few arcs. Category:DC 2000 Characters Category:LGBT